


All I Ever Wanted

by danrdarrenc



Category: Days of Our Lives
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-09
Updated: 2019-11-09
Packaged: 2021-01-25 21:15:30
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,249
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21362791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/danrdarrenc/pseuds/danrdarrenc
Summary: This is my version of the time jump, i.e., the story I would have written for Will and Sonny, or Will and Sonny decide to embark on the journey of surrogacy.
Relationships: Will Horton/Sonny Kiriakis
Comments: 2
Kudos: 20





	All I Ever Wanted

**Author's Note:**

> I know the jump is only a year but it worked better if I set it a few months beyond that.

**February 2021**

“Aunt Kayla! Are they are alright?” Will asks frantically, catching sight of Kayla coming out of the nursery.

“Yes,” Kayla says simply, a small smile tugging at her lips. “Cara and Ada are perfectly healthy. Rebecca seems to have cared well for them despite…” Kayla trails off.

Will sighs with relief as Sonny says, “Thank you, Kayla. Can we see them?”

Kayla nods, gives them another little smile, and leaves to check on other patients.

“Let’s go,” Sonny says, taking Will’s hand. “Let’s go see our daughters.”

* * *

**November 2019**

_“It’s so quiet,” Will said from where his head was pillowed on Sonny’s chest._

_It was their first night in their new house and Ari was staying with Gabi for the night so that Will and Sonny could get settled in the house themselves before settling her. They also thought it would do Gabi some good to spend the night with Ari, take her mind off of Stefan, even if Ari still didn’t quite understand what had happened._

_“You know, the mansion is so big that I didn’t actually realize how many people were living there. But now that we’re alone, I realize it was a lot,” Sonny answered, his fingers trailing paths along Will’s arm._

_They lay in comfortable silence for awhile, Will half-asleep, when Sonny said absentmindedly, “We should have another kid.”_

_“What?” Will shifted his head to look at Sonny._

_“Let’s have a baby.”_

_Will stared at Sonny for a minute but then his face split into a grin. “You mean it?”_

_“Yeah. Of course. Is that something you want?”_

_Will nodded. “Yes. Yes.”_

_“Yeah?”_

_“Yeah,” Will said on a laugh._

_Sonny laughed too and kissed Will._

* * *

**February 2021**

“Hi there, sweet girl,” Sonny coos, peeking over the edge of Cara’s nursery crib.

“They look so peaceful,” Will whispers, peering down into Ada’s crib. “So perfect. I can’t believe we almost lost them.”

“We didn’t, though,” Sonny says quietly, taking Will’s hand where it rests on the edge of both cribs. “They’re here and they’re safe and we’re going to take them home just as soon as Kayla says we can.”

Will nods, swallowing the lump in his throat.

Sonny pulls his hand away from Will’s to shift behind him and hug Will from the back. Sonny hooks his chin over Will’s shoulder and they watch their baby daughters sleep in silence.

* * *

**February 2020**

_“Should we tell Ari?” Will asked over dinner. Earlier in the day they had received word from their surrogate, Rebecca, that the implantation had gone well and they would know in a week if it had taken and she was pregnant._

_Sonny shook his head. “I think we should wait until we know she’s pregnant. No point in working her up if it didn’t take.”_

_Will nodded his agreement. Then, quietly, “I hope it took.”_

_Sonny’s face split into a grin. “Me too.”_

_Will grinned back._

_* * *_

**April 2020**

_Will was in his office at the house when his phone beeped with a text message from Rebecca. His hand hovered over his phone nervously. He wasn’t sure he could read another disappointing text._

_It had been two months since their first try; that and the next one hadn’t resulted in a pregnancy._

_Before he could read it though, he heard Sonny shout from the family room where Will had left him watching TV. Excited, Will stared down at the screen where the words “I’m pregnant!!” blazed up at him._

_Sonny ran into the room. “We’re having a baby!”_

_“We’re having a baby!” Will echoed jumping out of his chair to hug Sonny._

_They laughed together and kissed through their smiles and Will abandoned his work for lunch and champagne._

* * *

**February 2021**

“We’re home,” Will announces, pushing his way through the door, a baby carrier in his hand. Sonny is behind him with the other one.

A patter of footsteps comes running to greet them. Ari appears in the family room just as they put the babies down on the floor. Gabi enters a minute later, having followed Ari at a slower pace.

Ari stops a few feet away, wary, Gabi behind her.

“Do you want to come meet your sisters?” Sonny asks.

Ari nods but makes no move to go any closer.

“Come here,” Will says, and holds out his hand for her. He smiles encouragingly at her when she still seems nervous.

Finally, Ari takes Will’s hand and tentatively moves closer to her fathers and the new babies. Gabi follows behind.

When she’s standing over them, Will says, “Ari, these are your sisters, Cara and Ada.”

“Cara. Ada. This is your big sister, Ari,” Sonny says.

“You can touch them,” Will says.

Ari looks at him, her eyes wide.

“Here. Like this,” Will demonstrates, brushing his finger lightly against Cara’s cheek.

“You want me to do it with you?” Gabi asks.

Ari nods up at her mother.

“Here. Come here.” Gabi shifts them so they can sit on the floor next to Cara’s carrier. She puts Ari in her lap and takes her hand. Together they run the back of Ari’s hand across the baby’s cheek and gently tickle at her stomach.

“They’re beautiful,” Gabi says, a genuine smile radiating her face. “I’m so happy for you guys.”

“Thank you,” Sonny says and then shoots Will a look.

“What?”

“Will you be their godmother?” Will asks.

“Of course I will! I’d be insulted if I wasn’t.”

The three of them laugh together and lapse into comfortable silence, as Ari hops off of Gabi’s lap and finds her way to Sonny where he’s sitting with Ada.

* * *

**April 2020**

_“Ari, sweetie, can we talk to you for a little bit?” Will asked, knocking on her playroom door, interrupting her tea party with her Barbies._

_“Am I in trouble?” she asked._

_“No, Sweet Pea, you’re not in trouble,” Sonny answered, carefully moving chairs away from the table to make room._

_Will and Sonny both folded themselves onto the floor across the table from Ari. Ari waited for one of them to speak, looking back and forth between them. Will looked at Sonny, who gave him an encouraging smile and nod._

_“Ari, sweetie, would like a little brother or sister? Is that something you would want?” Will asked._

_Ari nodded her head violently, her blonde hair bouncing on her shoulders._

_“Yeah?” Sonny clarified, relieved._

_“Yeah!” Ari confirmed._

_“That’s great,” Sonny said, as there was a knock on the door._

_Will and Sonny both waved the woman standing in the doorway into the room._

_“Ari, this is Rebecca. A couple months ago we asked her to be your brother or sister’s mommy, and now she’s going to have a baby,” Sonny said, in the way they had agreed Ari would best understand the situation._

_“It’s nice to meet you, Ari,” Rebecca said with a smile sitting on the floor next to Sonny where he had made room for her._

_“Hi,” Ari answered tentatively._

_“Your Barbies are very pretty. Do they have names?” Rebecca asked._

_And just like that, Ari warmed to the new, if temporary, addition to their family._

* * *

**March 2021**

Although Jack and Jen have been gracious enough to provide Will three months of paid paternity leave from _The Spectator_, Will has offered to write articles from home, if for no other reason than to keep his mind and his skills from rusting. Julie and Doug, too, have been gracious, permitting Sonny as flexible a schedule as will allow for the manager of Doug’s Place.

Still, they need to be more awake they usually are these days.

“I forgot how exhausting newborns can be,” Will says, collapsing into bed beside Sonny, who is half asleep.

Since bringing the twins home, they have kept to a pretty tight schedule of alternating middle-of-the-night feedings but after three weeks, the sleep deprivation is getting to them both.

“Me too,” Sonny mumbles into his pillow.

“Hey.” Will pokes Sonny, who opens an eye to look at Will. “I think we need to change our plan.”

“What’d’ya mean?”

“We can’t keep doing this. Neither of us is getting any sleep. I think we need to alternate nights not feedings. That way one of us can sleep through the night each night and be functional in the morning.”

Sonny nods, his eyes drifting closed again.

Will chuckles. “Why don’t you go back to sleep. I’ll take the rest of the feedings tonight.”

Sonny nods again and drifts back into unconsciousness.

Will smiles softly down at his husband and then pads out of the bedroom. He checks on Ari to make sure the babies haven’t woken her, as they have sometimes in the past couple weeks, and then makes his way to the kitchen to make himself coffee. If he’s going to be up every two hours, he might as well use the time to do some writing.

As it turns out, Will’s idea of alternating nights instead of feedings is a good one; following the switch, their daily lives and schedules become easier to manage, the one who had slept the night before picking up slack where the other is lacking from sleep.

* * *

**May** **2020**

_“Do you think Ari’s going to feel abandoned when the baby’s born?” Will asked one night over dinner, a couple weeks after they had told her that Rebecca was pregnant._

_They were alone in the house, Ari with Gabi, and they were having a night in, dinner cooked by Sonny, movies, lovemaking._

_“What?”_

_Will stirred his pasta with his fork nervously, not looking at Sonny. “She’s been our only focus for so long. Do you think she’s going to feel abandoned when the baby comes?”_

_Sonny didn’t answer right away, pondering Will’s question. “I don’t think so. She’ll be seven in a couple of weeks. Seven and a half by the time the baby’s born. She’s old enough to understand what’s going on. Plus, she seemed really excited when we told her. I think she’s hoping it’s a girl so she can use her as a living doll.”_

_Will laughed, comforted slightly by Sonny’s words. But his face still betrayed his concern._

_“Hey,” Sonny said, taking Will’s hand over the table. “I don’t think we have anything to worry about. She has Gabi and so many people in this town that love her and would be ready to pick up slack if we fall behind. But I think Ari will turn out to be a good little helper.”_

_Will smiled at the thought and tried to enjoy the rest of their evening alone._

* * *

**April 2021**

Although Will had worried that Ari might feel abandoned, a worry that multiplied when they found out Rebecca was pregnant with twins, Sonny had been right. At almost eight, Ari is eager to help take care of the babies in any way she can - especially dressing them and feeding them bottles.

She’s the best little helper they have, and she has a real knack for calming them down when they’re crying. Neither Will nor Sonny is certain exactly how she does it, but more often than not, when the babies start mewling, Ari has them settled within minutes and without effort.

“We really need to figure out how she does that,” Sonny says, sitting down on the couch next to Will, who’s reading a book.

The babies had been fussy all day, barely taking their bottles and not sleeping. It was a day when they were both home, and Will and Sonny had both tried everything they could think of to get the girls to settle. Nothing had worked.

Despite all their efforts, Cara and Ada remained irritable all day, until Ari prances into the house with Gabi and makes a beeline for the babies’ room. Within minutes, Ari has gotten them to settle.

“Did you tell her some trick we don’t know about?” Will asks Gabi, who is staying for dinner.

“No,” Gabi answers, shaking her head. “But Rafe always said that Arianna was the only one who could ever calm me when I was fussy. Maybe it’s a sister thing.”

“Allie did have a knack with Sydney,” Will comments.

Gabi shrugs.

“They’re asleep,” Ari announces, appearing in the family room.

“Thank you, Little Lady,” Will says, flashing her a grin and holding his arms out for her.

She obliges, crawling into his lap for a cuddle. “Do you have homework to do?”

Ari nods.

“Okay. How about you do your homework for a little bit and then we’ll have some dinner. Does that sound like a deal?”

Ari nods again.

“Alright. Go get your backpack and we’ll get you set up.”

Will kisses her hair before she hops off his lap to retrieve her bag.

* * *

**July 2020**

_“Twins?!” Sonny asked, confirming what Kayla had just said._

_They were at Rebecca’s 13 week scan, making sure that the baby was progressing properly._

_“Yes. See,” Kayla said, pointing at two spots on the sonogram screen. “It looks like two of the implants took this time. Congratulations.”_

_“Twins,” Will whispered, dazed but happy._

_Sonny grinned at him and laced their fingers together._

_“I’m so glad it worked this time,” Rebecca said, smiling at them._

_“Thank you again for doing this,” Will said._

_“You don’t have to thank me. This is what I’ve always wanted to do. Bring joy to families like yours.”_

_Sonny squeezed her hand in appreciation._

* * *

_“Ari, sweetie, remember how we told you Rebecca’s going to be having a baby?” Sonny asked._

_Ari nodded as she licked her ice cream._

_“Well, she’s actually going to have two.” Sonny said._

_“Two?”_

_Will nodded. “Twins. Like Johnny and Allie.”_

_“Will I be able to play with them?”_

_“Of course you will,” Sonny answered._

_“Okay,” Ari said, unfazed, and licked the ice cream off her hand that had slipped from the cone._

* * *

_They were in the middle of painting the nursery when Sonny got the call._

_“Uncle Jack? Whoa. Slow down. What?”_

_Will stopped what he was doing, a paintbrush hanging in midair._

_“What?” Sonny repeated, his voice small._

_Will dropped the brush when he saw how pale Sonny had turned._

_Will hurried to take the phone. “Uncle Jack, it’s Will. What happened? Shit. We’ll be right there.” He hung up the phone. “Sonny? Hey.” Will tried to get his attention, but Sonny was paralyzed with shock. “Sonny,” Will tried again, with a hand on his face._

_Sonny looked at him, dazed. “I’m going to drive you to the hospital, okay? I’ll call Gabi on the way to take care of Ari.”_

_Still dazed, Sonny followed Will._

_Jack was waiting for them when they arrived._

_“What happened?” Sonny asked immediately. His shock had worn off in the car._

_“As I said on the phone, there was a car accident,” Jack responded._

_“Are my parents alright?” Sonny’s eyes were wide with fear._

_Kayla appeared before Jack could answer. “Sonny?”_

_“How are they?” Sonny asked her instead._

_“Your dad is in surgery right now. It looks like he has a punctured lung and broken ribs but he should be alright.”_

_“And Adrienne?” Jack asked._

_Kayla’s face dropped and Sonny swayed where he was standing. Will wrapped his arms around Sonny’s waist from the back to steady him. Jack had a hand on his shoulder too._

_“Adrienne didn’t make it. I’m so sorry, Sonny, Jack. She was gone when she arrived. There was nothing we could do.”_

_A sob escaped Sonny’s throat._

_“I’m going to go check on Justin. I’ll be back in a bit.”_

_She left and Will helped Sonny to one of the chairs. Jack sat down heavily next to them and buried his face in his hands._

* * *

_The funeral was a week later, as soon as Justin was deemed well enough to be discharged from the hospital._

_Sonny’s brothers came in from Arizona, said their goodbyes to their mother, supported their father and brother through the day, and left Salem again the next morning._

* * *

**June 2021**

“I can’t believe they’re six months old already,” Sonny says, dropping his head onto Will’s shoulder as they sit on the couch watching TV and rocking the bassinets lightly.

“I know.”

“I can’t believe Ari is eight. How did that happen?”

“I don’t know.” Sonny laughs lightly.

They lapse into comfortable silence until Will says quietly, “I’m happy, you know that right?”

Sonny lifts his head to look at Will curiously.

“This is all I ever wanted growing up. A stable home, a family without drama and constant fighting.”

Sonny nods. “I know.”

“I don’t think our life is boring.” His saying that to Sonny still haunts Will, even after all these years.

Sonny blinks, his lips parting slightly, Will’s thoughts clear.

“I know,” Sonny repeats. “You don’t have to apologize for that, Will. It was a long time ago. We’re different people now.”

Will nods and kisses Sonny.

* * *

**August 2020**

_“The babies both look perfectly healthy,” Kayla said with a smile. “Would you like to know the gender?”_

_Rebecca said “Yes” before Will and Sonny had a chance to even think about it._

_Kayla gave her a strange look but ignored her and waited for Will and Sonny to respond. They looked at each other, communicating silently, and then Will said, “Yeah.”_

_“Congratulations. You’re having two beautiful baby daughters.”_

_“Ari will be thrilled,” Will said immediately and Sonny laughed genuinely and whole-heartedly for the first time since Adrienne’s death._

* * *

_“Son?”_

_“Hmmm?”_

_They were lazing in bed, enjoying a Sunday morning without Ari, who had spent the weekend with Gabi and Rafe and David. Will’s head was pillowed on Sonny’s chest and Sonny’s fingers trailed circles along Will’s arm._

_“I’ve been thinking about names for the babies. I thought maybe we could name one after your mom.”_

_Sonny didn’t immediately respond. After a while, he said, “I’d like that. She’d like that. So would Dad.”_

_Will kissed Sonny’s shoulder. Thinking about Adrienne was still painful for Sonny but it was getting easier._

_“Maybe the other one can be after Caroline,” Sonny said._

_Will shifted his head to look at Sonny. Sonny smiled softly at him._

_Will returned the smile. “Grandma would love that.”_

* * *

**September 2021**

The six of them - Will, Sonny, Ari, the twins, and Chocolate, the brown and white beagle they had gifted Ari for her eighth birthday - are at the park, enjoying the last vestiges of summer that are quickly turning into fall.

Ari is running around chasing after the dog, throwing sticks and rolling around in the grass with him. They’ll have to thoroughly wash Ari’s clothes tonight but the joy on her face and in her laugh makes it worth it.

Sonny pushes the stroller back and forth from where they sit on the bench watching Ari and Chocolate.

“I wish my mom were here,” Sonny says suddenly.

Will watches Sonny, waits for him to say more. It has been a hard year without her, especially when Sonny wanted her support in the two weeks after the twins’ birth when everything happened with Rebecca.

“I know,” Will says gently, slipping his hand into Sonny’s free one.

“She would love to see this.” Sonny nods at the babies, Ari and the dog.

Will kisses Sonny’s temple. “She’ll always be here with us,” Will says, nodding at Ada.

Sonny smiles softly but sadly. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ruin the mood.”

“It’s okay to miss your mom, Sonny,” Will says.

Sonny closes his eyes and leans into Will. They stay like that for a long time, until the sun is setting and Ari comes wandering over to announce she’s hungry.

* * *

**November - December 2020**

_Rebecca moved into their spare bedroom as she entered her third trimester. Kayla suggested she be mostly on bedrest for the rest of the pregnancy, and so Will and Sonny catered to her as best as their schedules allowed. As she lived with them, Rebecca became a part of their daily routine and their daily lives. Ari’s adoration of her was not a small part of Rebecca feeling like part of the family._

_Without them realizing what was happening, Rebecca ingratiated herself into making decisions about the babies in perhaps a way a surrogate shouldn’t. She gave her input about the color the nursery should be, even though it was already painted a light pink with green balloons, she advised what baby products they should be buying, and she even boldly suggested names to place on their final list._

* * *

_They celebrated Will’s 28th birthday with a celebration at the house, so Rebecca could join them for a couple of hours. Will’s family and Justin celebrated with them, and the party ended up doubling as a celebration of Jennifer waking up from her year-long coma._

_Towards the end of the party emotions ran high when Will and Sonny announced the babies were being named after Adrienne and Caroline._

* * *

_Thanksgiving dinner was just the five of them - Will, Sonny, Rebecca, Gabi, and Ari._

* * *

_“Are you going to have a nanny?” Rebecca asked Will one morning in early December when he brought her breakfast._

_“I don’t know. We haven’t thought that far to be honest.”_

_“If you want, I could be their nanny for a bit until you figure it out. They say it’s good for newborns to be breastfed anyway.”_

_“I’ll talk to Sonny about it. Thanks,” Will said with a smile. “I’ve got to get to work. Will you be alright until Sonny comes to check on you for lunch?”_

_Rebecca nodded._

_“See you later.”_

* * *

_They skipped the annual Horton tree trimming that year, opting instead to spend the day at home with Rebecca, so she wouldn’t be alone on Christmas. Gabi joined them to round out their little family celebration._

_“Thank you for this,” Rebecca said, indicating her necklace, as they settled her back in her bed. “You didn’t have get me anything.”_

_“You’re having our babies. It’s the least we could do,” Sonny said._

_She smiled at him and then yawned._

_“Get some sleep,” Will said._

* * *

**November - December 2021**

“Happy birthday,” Sonny says into Will’s ear.

Will grins, still half-asleep.

Ari with Gabi, Lucas and Kate had readily agreed to take the babies for the night, so Will and Sonny could spend the morning of Will’s birthday alone. They’re all meeting up in Doug’s Place for lunch later today.

Sonny peppers Will’s face, neck, and shoulder with kisses. Will hums, content.

“Morning,” Will says and turns around in Sonny’s arms. “This’nice,” Will mumbles, eyes closed, burrowing his head half into the pillow and half onto Sonny’s shoulder.

Sonny wraps his arms tighter around Will’s waist and kisses Will’s hair.

When he wakes up again an hour later, Will is alone in the bed. “Sonny?”

“Happy birthday,” Sonny says from the doorway, carrying a tray.

“What’s this?” Will teases with a smile, sitting up against the headboard.

“Breakfast in bed,” Sonny says, placing the tray carefully on the bed and climbing in next to Will.

There’s two plates of pancakes, scrambled eggs, and bacon, two glasses of orange juice, and a single rose.

“This looks amazing,” Will says, pulling Sonny in for a lingering kiss.

“Nothing but the best for my husband,” Sonny says when they pull apart.

Will smiles, eyes sparkling, and digs into the food.

* * *

Thanksgiving they spend at the Brady Pub, where the Bradys and Hortons have all gathered to celebrate the holiday.

* * *

The twins’ first Christmas is a bright and cheerful celebration, and Will and Sonny each hang one of their ornaments right next to Ari’s and underneath their own.

* * *

**January - February 2021**

_They rang in the new year at home, anxious that Rebecca could go into labor at any minute._

* * *

_As Rebecca’s due date neared, Will and Sonny alternated days off of work so that at least one of them was home with her in case she went into labor._

_Will was in his office at _The Spectator _when Sonny called, frantic._

_“Rebecca’s in labor! We’re on the way to the hospital.”_

_“I’ll be right there.” Will gave Jen, who was back at work, a hurried explanation and rushed out on her wave._

_“Sonny!” Will spotted him pacing outside the delivery room. “Where’s Rebecca?”_

_“They’re prepping her or checking her dilation or something,” Sonny said, grabbing Will’s hands._

_“Sonny? Will?” Sarah popped her head into the hallway. “You can come in. She’s ready.”_

_They hurried inside hand-in-hand and quickly shoved their way into the scrubs Sarah handed them._

_Rebecca was screaming, Kayla encouraging her. Will and Sonny each settled on one side of her and took one of her hands. Almost immediately, she squeezed their hands as another contraction ran through her._

_An hour later, Cara and Ada were settled in their fathers’ arms._

_“Everything looks perfect and normal,” Kayla said with a smile. “I’ll give you some privacy.”_

_“Do you want to hold them?” Will asked Rebecca when Kayla had left._

_“Can I?”_

_Sonny nodded and handed her Ada. Carefully, when she had Ada balanced in one arm, Will placed Cara in the other._

_“They’re so beautiful,” Rebecca whispered, tears rolling down her face._

_“Yeah. They are,” Sonny said, choked up, and laced his fingers with Will’s across the bed._

* * *

_Two days later, Will and Sonny arrived at hospital to bring the babies home to find them gone._

_“What do you mean they’ve been discharged?” Will asked the nurse._

_“About an hour ago,” she said and clicked the mouse on the computer. “To a Rebecca Vale.” At Will and Sonny’s alarmed looks, she said, “She said she was their mother.”_

_“Well she’s not,” Sonny hissed, pulling his phone out and ringing Rebecca. “She’s not answering her cell or the house.”_

_“Of course she’s not,” Will replied, shaking his head and banging his fist on the nurse’s station._

_“What’s going on here?” Kayla asked._

_“Your staff let Rebecca walk out of here with our daughters,” Sonny barked._

_“What? It specifically says in their file that she’s a surrogate,” Kayla said, double-checking the computer._

_“I’m sorry, Dr. Johnson. She said she was their mother,” the nurse said, distressed._

_“Why don’t you go do some rounds, Taylor,” Kayla said, not unkindly. “We’ll discuss this later.”_

_Close to tears, the nurse hurried away._

_“Eli,” Will said into his phone. “I’m reporting a kidnapping.”_

* * *

_“Are you sure you’re alright keeping Ari?” Will asked Gabi._

_“Will, she’s my daughter,” Gabi said. “You and Sonny focus on getting those beautiful babies back.”_

_Will’s face fell and Gabi pulled him into a hug._

* * *

_“Can you think of any place she might be hiding?” Eli asked._

_It had been three days and so far all searches of Salem and the usual hiding places had been unfruitful._

_“I don’t - we don’t - I guess we don’t really know a lot about her,” Sonny answered, sighing and rubbing his hand over his face._

_Neither of them had slept much in the past three days; they were both exhausted._

_Will dropped his head back against the couch, worn out and close to tears._

* * *

_As February blew into Salem on a blizzard, Rebecca had been on the run with Cara and Ada for almost two weeks._

_Will and Sonny had slept fitfully and eaten sporadically and only because survival required it. Will used all of his contacts at _The Spectator_ to help with the search and Eli had actually enlisted the help of John and BlackPatch._

_Finally, a few days before Valentine’s Day, Rebecca made a mistake._

_“We got a hit on Rebecca’s credit card at the train station in Chicago,” Eli told Will and Sonny over the phone. “We’ve already alerted the train station and Chicago PD. I’m on my way there now. I’ll keep you posted.”_

_Two hours later, Eli called to say they had Rebecca in custody and the babies were at the hospital with Kayla getting checked out._

_“Thank god,” Will said, relieved, as he hurried after Sonny to their car. “We’re on the way to the hospital right now.”_

_At the hospital, Eli filled them in. “Rebecca confessed to kidnapping the twins, said she loved them and couldn’t let them go.”_

_Sonny swore under his breath._

_“How do we know she’s not going to try this again?” Will asked._

_“I’ve already spoken to the DA and she’s ready to prosecute her. She’s behind bars.”_

_“Thank you, Eli,” Will said._

_“I was just doing my job,” Eli said with a smile. “I have to get back to the station. Will you be alright?”_

_They both nodded and he left. A minute later, Will spotted Kayla coming out of the nursery. “Aunt Kayla! Are they alright?”_

* * *

**January 2022**

Doug’s Place hosts the twins’ first birthday party. Hortons, Bradys, and Kiriakises populate the restaurant - Sami, a mostly fully healthy EJ, Lucas and the kids have come in from Italy - and Ari bounces around asking if anyone needs anything, like the little helper she’s been in the eleven months.

“Daddy, can I play with the babies?” Ari asks, swinging her feet on one of the barstools.

“They’re asleep right now, sweetie, but you’ll be the first one to know when they’re awake,” Will says, tickling her.

She squirms away, laughing, and hops off the chair to hide behind Sonny, who’s talking with Justin.

Will laughs and shares a grin across the restaurant with Sonny when Ari tells him what happened. Seconds later, Sonny walks over to Will, brandishing the baby monitor in his hand. Ari trails behind him.

“They’re awake,” Sonny says, heading to the office where they had set up the babies’ portacrib.

“Can I come?” Ari asks, bouncing on her toes.

“Come on, Princess,” Will says and Ari runs towards the office. Will and Sonny follow at a slower pace.

Five minutes later, Will and Sonny emerge from the back room, each with a baby in their arms. Ari walks alongside them, tickling at the babies’ feet.

“The guests of honor are awake,” Sonny announces and the entire room bursts into “ohhhs” and “awwws” and “hi theres”.

Chairs are pushed back and plates abandoned as family members meander over to say hello and kiss Cara and Ada. They’re not fussy today so they quickly get passed around: Marlena, Kate, Justin, Jennifer, Ciara, Eric, Brady, Sami, Lucas, Roman, and Kayla each gets a turns with at least one of the babies.

Eventually, the twins end up crawling around on the floor with Ari chasing after them.

When it’s getting late, after they’ve sung “Happy Birthday” and cut the cake, and the twins are lagging, sitting calmly on the couch with Sami holding Cara and Lucas holding Ada, Will clinks a knife against a glass.

“We, uh, we just wanted to thank everyone for coming,” Will says to the crowd. “That’s it. That’s all I have.” Will laughs along with his family. “Yeah. Just thanks.”

After that, the party begins to break up, guests staggering out one by one.

“We’ll see you tomorrow?” Sami asks, EJ and Lucas behind her. Allie, Johnny, and Sydney are on the couch, entertaining Ari.

Will nods, rubbing Cara’s back as she falls asleep on his shoulder. Sonny is next to him, Ada already asleep in the carriage.

“This was a great party, William, Jackson,” EJ says.

“Thanks,” Sonny responds.

“Johnny, Allie, Syd, we’re leaving,” Sami says, as she heads to the door.

“Bye bye,” Lucas whispers to Cara and again to Ada as he passes the stroller.

“Ari, sweetie, time for us to go, too,” Sonny says as Will carefully places a sleeping Cara into the stroller.

Six hours later, Will and Sonny crawl into bed together and are asleep within minutes.


End file.
